Closing
by FurFurKanga
Summary: Part 4 of the White Album series: "I... I just wanted to be happy, you know? Don't I deserve to be happy?"


A/N: Belated Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

I want to apologize to all of you who are waiting for _Ookami-san_ to update. I'm moving to another country soon, so most of my time has been spent getting my affairs in order. I'll start writing that once I settle in my new place.

This is a continuation of a yearly(?) series titled White Album. I would insist you read (or re-read) the first three parts as this makes several references to them.

As I mentioned several times before, this little series is based on a particular event that happened around me and that I would write the ending based on how that event resolved itself. I have my answer now, which is why I'm writing this last one-shot. I'm hoping to close that chapter in my life together with the year.

Title comes from a song from White Album 2, which inspired the series in the first place.

Comments and criticisms highly welcomed. I hope you enjoy.

* * *

 **Closing**

"Kotori-neesan! What do you think of this?"

The orphaned girl in front of her does a little twirl, showing off her ensemble.

"That looks amazing, Chi-chan! This would definitely look good in our fashion show."

"Thanks!"

Whatever else the child had been meaning to say was drowned about by the other children scrambling around them, speaking over one another as they each tried to catch Kotori's attention.

"O-one at a time please...!"

A loud clap sounded through the air and the startled children quietened. A pretty girl with blond haired approached them.

"You know the rules, kids! Raise your hand if you want to speak."

Several arms shot up immediately. The blonde turned to Kotori and gave her a thumbs up. The ring on her fourth finger shone beautifully.

"You're doing great, Kotori-chi!"

"Thanks, Mari-chan."

* * *

Mari handed her a cup of steaming hot chocolate.

"Thanks, but I already have one."

"No, silly! It's for Umi. She didn't grab hers when she went out for a break. Would you mind giving it to her?"

"No problem."

And so, with both hands occupied, Kotori ventured back out into the snow.

It didn't take too long to find her. She was sitting on the bench not far from where Kotori had unceremoniously flopped on the snow. The reminder made her cheeks heated.

Kotori pressed the cup against the side of Umi's face in lieu of a verbal greeting, not wanting to disturb the serenity of the evening. Umi turned, reach out for the cup with a tired smile.

"Thank you."

Kotori took a seat beside her, raising her cup to her lips as she watched Umi sipped hers. She froze as she saw the glitter of a ring on her finger.

"...I want to thank you for staying. It meant the world to those kids."

"It's the least I could do." Kotori smiled, forcing a lighter tone in her voice.

"If you leave now, you should still be able to make it to the Christmas party with the others."

Kotori remembered she kept her phone on silent. She wondered if she had any missed calls.

"We didn't plan one this year. Our timetables didn't match."

"That's unfortunate."

Kotori nodded in agreement.

"Do you help out often, Umi-chan?"

"Mari roped me in last minute. She needed an extra set of hands because her usual partner had an emergency."

"...She seems nice."

"Yeah, she is." A momentary pause as Umi took a sip. "She organizes this every year. Couldn't ask for someone better."

Kotori fingered her own ring absentmindedly.

"Congratulations."

Umi furrowed her brow, confused.

"You and Mari."

A few seconds passed before Umi was barking out in laughter.

"That would never happen. She's married to Kanan and they're crazy about each other. Why'd you even think that?"

"Your ring."

"Oh... it's a prop."

Umi looked at it, as if truly seeing it for the first time, before taking it off and slipping it away in her pocket.

"What for?"

"I'm having a bit of a trouble with the story I'm writing. Mari suggested I put myself in one of the character's shoes. She thought that a change in perspective might be what I needed."

"Oh! You write?! What do you write?"

"Fiction, mostly. Not that popular; you've probably never heard of it. Anyways, how have you been lately?"

* * *

Kotori walked with a skip in her step.

Her reunion with Umi went better than expected. They talked long into the night, catching up with one another.

Kotori learnt that Umi decided to stay abroad after getting her master's degree in literature. Her old number became unavailable after a long period of disuse.

They would have continued all night had Mari not come out and reminded them of the time.

She barely caught the last train to her station.

Kotori couldn't help herself from smiling whenever she glanced at her phone. The exchanged numbers and she convinced Umi to attend Eri and Nozomi's wedding instead of just sending flowers.

She could see the broken threads between Umi and them mending.

Soon, it would just be like old times.

Kotori fished out her keys to unlock the door. She was about to call out to Honoka when she stepped on something.

She sighed. Honoka had a bad habit of leaving her shoes haphazardly near the entrance.

Kneeling down, she had meant to put them away when she paused. There were two pairs of shoes. One was Honoka. The other was... foreign.

She moved further inwards. The apartment was dark. Her feet automatically led her to their bedroom.

Honoka was lying on the bed. Kotori's substitute was leaning over her.

She needn't see more.

A gasp escaped her lips before she could stop herself. She turned tail and ran.

Several streets away from the apartment, she dialled a recent number.

* * *

The hotel room Umi rented was the size of a small apartment. It came with a living room, complete with settee and coffee table in front of a large big screen TV.

It was where Kotori sat, staring uncomprehendingly at her own hands.

Umi took a tentatively sat beside her.

"Kotori, what happened?"

Kotori wished Umi hadn't asked her that. She had put the thoughts in the back of her mind on ride over, focusing on the need to be somewhere else.

Somewhere safe.

Her throat tightened, her breathing became uneven. Her eyes burnt as tears pricked at the corner.

She felt arms wrapped around her, pulling her to Umi. A hand began moving in soothing circular motions on her back.

It only made her cry more.

* * *

"Come on, let's get you to bed. It'll be better in the morning."

Kotori doubted it, but she nodded anyways.

"Make yourself comfortable. I'll be on the couch if you need me."

"Wait!"

Her arm reached out, catching Umi before closed the door behind her.

"Stay with me."

"I... I don't think that's a good idea."

"Please, Umi-chan. I can't be alone tonight."

"...Okay."

* * *

When Kotori gained consciousness, all she wanted to do was sleep in. Her body was still tired from volunteering at the orphanage. Kotori snuggled closer into Honoka who laid beside her, her arms curled protectively around her.

It felt right.

"Good morning, Kotori."

Kotori froze.

That was not Honoka's voice. The body beside her wasn't Honoka. The arms around her waist didn't belong to her fiancé.

It didn't feel wrong.

Kotori shifted until she was looking into amber eyes with dark circles underneath them.

"Did you sleep?"

"Yes."

They were so close. Kotori just had to lean forward a little...

Umi shifted away the last second. Lips met the corner of her mouth.

"You should go home... before you do something you regret."

Umi made a pointed glance at the ring on her finger.

The one that Honoka put on her when she proposed.

She ripped the ring off her finger and threw it out out the window. The ring clanged sharply against the glass.

"Kotori!"

"She cheated on me."

"... What?"

"Honoka _cheated_ on me."

Kotori laughed hollowly.

"Oh gods, and we were supposed to be married in the coming year. One late night and she brings a woman into our bed. How long has it been going? Does she bed a random woman every time I work overnight? Did she not expect me to find out? When was she going to come clean about it? After our first anniversary? Five years? Ten?"

A hand covered her mouth before she could go any further.

"Breathe."

Umi made an exaggerated motion of breathing in and out, beckoning Kotori to copy her. They repeated the motion for several minutes before Umi lifted her hand. Her agitation expended, Kotori could only feel lost and defeated.

"I feel so stupid."

Kotori sighed.

"I... I just wanted to be happy, you know? Don't I deserve to be happy?"

"You do..."

"Don't _you_ deserve it?"

"..."

"I think you do."

When Kotori leaned forward this time, Umi didn't turn away.

* * *

The frozen pond laid before them.

"I can't believe you still remember the way here."

"Of course. It meant something to me."

Kotori couldn't stop the grin on her face. Her pressed a chaste kiss against Umi's cheek before settling down to change into skates.

"I can't wait to show you how much I've improved. I had a lot of time to practice by myself."

Umi frowned. "Alone?"

"The... others weren't into it."

She helped Umi up when she finished changing into skates.

"Come on, let's go!"

This time Umi didn't have to lead her like a newborn.

They skated side by side. Together.

Though Umi still had to carry her down afterwards.

* * *

"Well, aren't you two a rare sight?"

The friendly shopkeeper smiled broadly as they entered the cake shop.

"I usually see either one of you during this time of year, rarely together."

The shopkeeper began packing the cake even before they even had a chance to point it out, knowing what the two want. He waved Umi away when she began to fish out her wallet to pay for it.

"You don't have to pay for it. It's on the house!"

He puffed out his chest proudly as he said it, thumping a palm against his sternum. Kotori laughed at his silly antics.

"But..."

"No buts! I gotta reward loyal customers somehow!"

Umi looked towards Kotori for help. Kotori gave an answering grin.

"Well, you're definitely going to see more of us in the coming years. Thanks!"

Umi sighed, good-naturedly.

"Thank you."

Kotori took no time in hurrying Umi back to the hotel. She will not wait a second longer than necessary to have the cake.

She moaned when she finally took the first bite of her cake, the rich cheesy flavor filling her whole mouth.

The strawberry cheesecake tasted way better than she remembered.

* * *

"I'm going to get us some food. What do you want, Mari?"

"Set C, please."

"Okay. And Kotori, you want a Set A, right?"

"You know me so well, Umi-chan."

"Sit tight. I'll be back soon."

"So... Kotori-chi, you and Umi look really happy."

"Yeah, the last few days have been great."

"Do you have any plans for the coming year?"

"I'm launching my own fashion line, tentatively labelled as _Powder Snow,_ this year. We're hoping for a winter launch, just before the holiday season."

"Oh."

"Is something wrong, Mari-chan?"

"I just thought you'd be going overseas together with Umi. She has a teaching position at a prestigious university there. Long distance relationships don't usually work out, you know?"

"Umi-chan and I will work it out."

"Food's here! What did I miss?"

* * *

"Umi-chan, what are you doing?"

"I just had a bit of inspiration, so I'm putting it down in words before I forget."

"Oh! Did you get over your writer's block?"

"Yeah, I did."

"Come on. Let me see, let me see!"

"Wait, Kotori! No!"

Umi slammed the laptop shut before she could read a single word. Kotori pouted.

"Umi-chan..."

Umi looked away.

"It's embarrassing..."

"Okay, I won't pry any further, but promise me something? Let me be the first person who reads it when it gets published."

Umi smiled.

"Definitely. I'll even have your copy signed first."

* * *

Umi spent a few hours a day working quietly on her story.

Kotori didn't mind.

Instead, she joined her. Taking a seat beside her, Kotori would draw rough ideas into her sketchbook as Umi steadily typed away.

Sometimes, Kotori would glance at Umi.

Other times, Umi would glance at her.

On rare occasions, they would glance up at the same time and their eyes would meet. They would share a smile before returning to their own tasks.

This was new for Kotori, being able to work on her own thing while with company.

It could never have happened before.

* * *

"Umi-chan, do you remember where I left the hairbrush?"

" _Kotori-chan, where are you?"_

Kotori froze. She hadn't been checking her phone lately, having switched off all the notifications. Her colleagues were all going out of town during the holidays, so she knew she wouldn't be getting any important calls.

" _You haven't come home in days. I asked Eri-chan and the others and they said they haven't spoken to you in the last few days either. Kotori-chan, what you saw that night was a misunderstanding. I'll explain everything when you come back. Please come back soon. We're all worried about you. I miss you, Kotori-chan... See you soon..."_

 _Beep._

" _This is the end of the voice message. If you would-"_

Umi cut the call.

"You have to talk to her."

Kotori crossed her arms.

"I have nothing to say to her. She cheated on me with another woman, Umi-chan! No excuse would ever make that acceptable!"

"You're right, but you can't keep avoiding her either. She's not going to stop hounding you until you tell her that directly."

Kotori deflated.

"I know."

She slumped into Umi's waiting arms, drawing comfort from her. Taking her phone from Umi, she texted a message and showed it to Umi.

 _Mon_ , _31st. 2:00pm. I'll meet you at the apartment._

At Umi's nod, Kotori tapped the send button. Then, she chucked the phone away at the nearby couch.

"I'm not looking forward to it at all."

"I know, but I'll be with you every step of the way."

* * *

There was a sense of dread as she took the elevator into her apartment.

"It'll be okay. Just say what you have to say and then, we leave."

"Yep. In and out. Five minutes. Ten minutes at most."

The elevator pinged as it reached the correct floor. Several steps later, she was standing in front of her apartment. Umi was standing a bit further away, letting her take point.

Kotori barely had time to drop her arm after ringing the doorbell before she was assaulted in a hug.

"Kotori-chan. You're really here!"

There was an instinctive feeling in her to return the hug, born out of being together with Honoka for many years. She stomped it down.

Honoka released her, but kept their hands held together. She looked down, confused.

"Where's your ring?"

Kotori took her hands away from Honoka and crossed her arms, hiding her left hand.

"You said you had an explanation?"

The door opened further and Tsubasa stepped out.

"Tsubasa-chan, what are you doing here?"

Her question became moot when she looked beyond them into the apartment, revealing more faces. The other members or Muse and A-Rise were also present.

"We were all worried about you."

"It's my fault, Kotori-chan." Tsubasa explained. "Honoka had a bit too much to drink that night. She could barely stand by herself. So, I helped her back to your apartment and put her to bed."

Kotori felt her mouth dried.

"Nothing happened between us. Honoka-chan loves you too much to ever do anything to hurt you."

Her self-righteous indignation drained away instantly, leaving only a palpable, mounting dread.

 _But it would mean that... she was the one who..._

"Kotori?"

Umi spoke up, grounding her to the moment.

The others gaped as they took stock of Umi's presence. It would have been hilarious if it wasn't so... bad.

It was supposed to be simple.

In and out.

Five minutes.

Max Ten.

Her fourth finger felt tight and heavy.

Honoka looked at Umi, and then glanced back at the hidden hand. She turned to Kotori.

"Whatever she told you are all lies, okay? I would never do anything that would hurt you. I love you, Kotori-chan."

Honoka turned to Umi.

"And you! I would have forgiven you if you had just apologized the first time, but not only did you not do that, you tried to make Kotori-chan break up with me?!"

"Hey, Honoka, maybe you should let Umi say her piece first?"

"What is there to say? It's obvious what she did."

The rest of the argument drowned out around Kotori. The way Umi was looking at her, waiting...

So imploringly.

Just waiting.

She looked away.

Honoka shoved Umi.

"Hey! Stop looking at Kotori-chan like that! I'm not going let to bully her into anything any longer!"

Umi's jaw tightened. She spun on her heels and left.

* * *

"Five!"

"Four!"

"Three!"

"Two!"

"One!"

"Happy New Year!"

Honoka turned to Kotori with a broad smile on her face.

"I love you, Kotori-chan."

"I... Me too, Honoka-chan."

* * *

Mari contacted her out of the blue one day, asking to meet.

Which was why Kotori was waiting at a park nearby her workplace during her lunch period.

"H-hello, Mari-chan."

"I just here to return some things you left behind."

A bag was thrusted in her face.

"Don't worry. You won't be seeing me again."

Mari left without another word, leaving Kotori to search through the bag.

Her sketchbook and drawing tools were in there, along with a few other personal items.

There was a small box she couldn't identify though.

Curious, Kotori took it out of the bag and opened it.

Her engagement ring was in it.

She slipped it on her ring finger.

She wasn't used to its weight.

* * *

" _Did you hear, Kotori-chan?"_

"About what, Hanayo-chan?"

" _The sequel to_ White Love _,_ Toki no Mahou _has been cancelled."_

"That's disappointing to hear."

" _Rumor has it the author, Mizuno-sensei, committed suicide."_

* * *

"I now pronounce you wife and wife."

The crowd cheered as Eri and Nozomi shared their first kiss as a happily married couple in front of all their friends and family.

Well, to be more precise, most of their friends.

Unsurprisingly, Umi didn't come.

Strangely enough, her flowers didn't arrive either.


End file.
